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Viennese lunch or dinner always starts with a soup. Emperor
Franz Joseph also had his predilections, a consommé made
from juicy beef, soup bones, and soup greens seasoned
with salt, pepper, and a dash of nutmeg, all of which started out
cold and, after coming to a boil, simmered for at least two hours.
Clarified with egg white and again brought to a boil, the soup was
then strained through a dish towel. The consommé can serve as
"background" to breadcrumb or marrow dumplings, small veal and
bread dumplings,
Fritatten
(julienne-cut crêpes) or
Kaiserschöberl
, a
specialty named after the emperor.
The light main dish was always fish. There was an abundance
of these water creatures in the lakes and rivers of the monarchy:
crayfish and trout,
Fogosch
(also called
Schill
or
Zander
, a pike-
perch fish),
Waller
, a catfish with long antennae from the Danube,
and, of course, the popular carp, boiled or steamed with garlic and
vegetables but also, like the delicious Prague Carp, surrounded by
slivered almonds, thick plum preserve, and raisins. Or a veal cutlet
au
nature
with rice -- or maybe a well-seasoned stuffed breast of veal.
The beef dish might have been a
Tafelspitz
(boiled filet of beef), which
is still very popular today, but there were also dishes with grand
names such as the
Rumpsteak Prince Auersperg
, or the
Esterhazy-
Rostbraten
. Certainly,
Kaisergulasch
(Emperor’s goulash) must have
been served often. The emperor, it is said, liked his goulash with
noodles tossed in butter.
A
Dining in the
Imperial Train
Left: The personnel of the court kitchen before departure
(DW)
Right: Menu of April 14, 1873
(DW)